Shortage: Bitter cold, demand squeezes propane supplies

One firm cuts back on how much it delivers

Dateline >> Tighter propane reserves across the nation doesn't mean that your supplier will run out of fuel anytime soon.

However, you're paying more than last year to keep your home warm this winter. How much more?

At this time last year, Mason's Propane Service in East Berlin charged customers who owned their own propane tank $1.85 per gallon, said Lori Crone, an owner of the company.

Now, the price is $2.15 per gallon -- a 16 percent jump, she said.

Based on the tighter supplies, Mason's Propane has started cutting back on the amount of propane it delivers to each customer to 200 gallons, unless a homeowner expressly asks for more fuel, Crone said.

At the current prices, a Mason's Propane customer is paying $60 more for 200 gallons of fuel.

Last year, an estimated 12,019 residents used bottled, tank or LP gas to heat their homes, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

"We are just trying to get them past this cold," Crone said. "Instead of filling our customers up and getting them to August, we are just trying to get them to March. We are just trying to get past this hump."

Why are propane supplies so pinned down?

This past fall, farmers across the Midwest took in a grain crop that was more wet than usual, said Robert Astor of Shipley Fuels Marketing in York.

Typically, farmers get more money for dry rather than wet grain, he said.

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So, the farmers, many of who live in rural areas devoid of natural gas lines, used propane to fuel their drying efforts, Astor said.

At the same time, large suppliers of both propane and home heating fuel opted to sell a portion of their product overseas, Crone said.

To put further strains on supply, some pipelines that traditionally carry propane from Texas and Canada have been re-purposed to carry other products, Astor said.

"It's like the perfect storm that created this shortage," Astor said. The supply is tight, but not to the point that suppliers will start running out and creating a serious situation."

Each week, Mason's Propane takes in a four-load shipment of roughly 35,000 gallons of propane.

And, save for a few gallons left over for emergencies, all of that fuel is dispensed to customers.

Last year, the company worked off of five or six loads a week and had no problem topping off customers' tanks, Crone said. "Everyone is hurting for propane," she said. "We are shooting just to get through this month and next month."